Gar-coupling



No. 65,925. Patented Dec. l3, was.

G. c. THOMPSON.

CAR COUPLING.

(Application filed Aug. 31, 1897.)

(No Model.)

w vtmeooco ZQZL M Grog? [@om oson g g fl fleamfi w w UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE O. THOMPSON, OF SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS.

CAR-COUPLING.

s'rncrricA'rion forming part of Letters Patent No. 615,925, datedDecember 13, 1898.

Appliatioii filed Angustsi, 1897. Serial N6; 656,140. (No model.)

To aZZ whom) it may con/067%.

Be it known that I, GEORGE O. THOMPSON, of San Antonio, in the county ofBexar and State of Texas, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Oar-Oouplings; and I do hereby declare the following tobe a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as willenable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and usethe same.

This invention relates to car-couplers; and it consists, essentially, ofa draw-head having a gravitating dog and a sliding latch, the said dogengaging a coupling link and resting against the latch to preventaccidental disengagement of the link from the draw-head until the latchis operated by a sliding bar adjustable from either side of the car orby means of a lever from the top of a box-car.

The invention further consists of the details of construction andarrangement of the several parts, which will be more fully hereinafterdescribed and claimed.

The object of the invention is to provide means for convenientlycoupling cars without requiring trainmen or operators to pass betweentwo cars, thereby preventing accidents and loss of life, and alsofacilitating said operation by means which are simple and effective intheir construction, strong and durable, easily and readily applied tocars now in use, and comparatively inexpensive in the cost ofmanufacture.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of aportion of the end of a car, showing the improved coupling attachedthereto and means for operating the same.

Fig. 2 is a central longitudinal section of two draw-heads embodying theinvention and showing a coupling-link in connection therewith. Fig. 3 isa top plan view of a drawhead, showing the top thereof removed and inconnected position therein.

Referring to the drawings, wherein similar numerals of reference areemployed to indicate corresponding parts in the several views, thenumeral 1 designates a draw-head having a suitable draw-bar, which isattached to a car, and it will beunderstood that the coupling may beapplied either to a box or platform car and,if desired,topassenger-coaches; but it is more particularly intended for use onfreight-cars.

The front portion of the draw-head, at the mouth of the link-orificetherein, is provided with alined openings 2 for the reception of thecoupling-pin for use in cases of emergency and when the coupling deviceshereinafter set forth mayhave become disarranged or broken by accidentsor from other causes. The upper portion of the draw-head islongitudinally slotted, as at 3, and in a portion of the said slot ismovably mounted the upper end of a gravitating dog 4, freely supportedby a pivot-bolt or cross-rod 5. An opening 6 is formed in the lowerportion of one side of the front part of the draw-head,which alines witha transverse groove 7 in the bottom of said draw-head and also with arecess 8 in the opposite wall, and engaging the said opening 6, groove7, and recess 8 is a sliding latch 9, to the outer end of which isconnected the front end of a longitudinally-disposed lever 10, having aslot 11 therein,through which loosely depends an operating-pin 12,projecting from a slide-bar 13, mounted in loop-bearings 14, attached tothe adjacent end of the car. The slide-bar 13 has outwardly-extendinggrips or handles 15 on opposite ends thereof, and has also connectedthereto an operating-lever 16, movably attached to the center andextending upwardly over the end of the car, as shown, being fulcrumed at17 and the outer end bent and reduced to provide a handle 18. The saidlever 16 has a spring 19 bearing thereagainst and, as shown, is of flatform and slightly arranged at an angle; but it will be understood thatthe said spring may have substituted therefor an equivalent form of suchdevice without departing from the intention of the invention.

The draw-head will of course be supplied with cushioning devices wellknown to the art and is intended for use with a link 20, and toaccommodate the entrance of the link into the draw-head 1 the front edgeof the latch 9 is beveled, as at 21, to permit the end of the link toride upwardly thereover without obstruction.

In operation the link enters the link-orifice in the draw-head andpasses upwardly over the beveled front edge 21 of the latch 9 andstrikes the dog 4, lifting the latter upwardly I until the lower endthereof is passed, when the said dog drops back into a vertical posi=tion and through the slot of the link. The link then bears against therear edge of the dog and forces said dog against the rear edge of thelatch, thereby preventing the said link from becoming detached from thedraw-head. The said link will be held by the draw-head carrying the samein such position that it will enter the link-orifice of the companiondrawhead without being arranged for this purpose and will becomeautomatically connected in the manner just described. When it is desiredto disconnect the link from the drawhead, the slide-bar 13 is operatedeither by the grips or handles 15 or the lever 16 to throw the latch 9outwardly from the said draw-head and permit the link to be drawn out,it being understood that no obstruction to this operation under theseconditions will be offered, owing to the fact that the dog freely swingson its support. This simple operation provides convenient means forcoupling and uncoupling cars in making up trains or when it is desiredto make a flying switch, and, furthermore, it is intended that the bar13, with the grips orhandles l5,may be used alone without theoperating-lever 16, or the operatinglever 16 may be used without thegrips or handles; but it is preferred that they be used together,especially when the improved coupler is applied to box-cars.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the Ordinary draw-head can bequickly arranged to accommodate the improved coupler, requiring only theformation of the slots 3 and 6, the groove 7, and the recess 8. By theformation of the groove 7 a strong resistance is offered to the tensionexerted against the dog and through the dog against the latch by thelink, and breakage of the several parts is thereby prevented, as wellasaccidental uncoupling.

It is obviously apparent that many minor changes in the details ofconstruction and ar rangement of the several parts might be made andsubstituted for those shown and described without in the least departingfrom the nature or spirit of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is- 1. In acar-coupling, the combination with the draw-head and its swinging pin,of the transversely-positioned sliding latch projecting laterally of thesaid draw-head at one side, a lever-arm connected to thelaterally-projecting portion of the said latch and extending back towardthe end of the car, a transverse endwise movable slide-bar mounted uponthe end of the car and having a depending pin which engages a slot ofthe said lever-arm, said slide-bar having grips or handles at its endportions, and a spring-actuated lever fulcrumed to the end of the carand connected to the said slide-bar, substantially as specified.

2. In a car-coupling, the combination of a draw-head having a slot inthe upper portion thereof, a gravitating dog having its upper portionmovably mounted in said slot, said draw-head also having an opening atone side near the front alining with a bottom groove, and a recess inthe opposite wall, a latch with a front beveled edge movably mounted insaid groove and said slot in the side of the draw head, a lever havingits front end attached to the outer end of the said latch and providedwith a slot, 2. slide-bar with a depending pin movable through the slotin the lever, grips or handles on the opposite ends of said slide bar,and a spring-actuated lever movably attached to the center of saidslide-bar, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence oftwo snbscrib= ing witnesses.

GEORGE O. THOMPSON. Witnesses:

JAMES M. MYERS, FRANCIS B. GARTRELL.

